The mechanics of creating life...a machine-like process.
by rmtm333

Comment:
I'd have to disagree here. It's more of a chemical process, which fuels a charge potential to drive energy related reactions that 'drives' the process of life.

The birthing process on the other hand is a mechanical process in a loose sense (i.e. the fetus is propelled through the birth canal by rhythmic contractions). I'll assume this is what you were referring to.

Your border is nice, but I suspect some will disagree here...probably could have played it safer and used a more conventional one. The desaturation works well given the backlighting. I think this is straight B&W and while it is perfectly effective, I recommend toning with your choice of color...say steel blue or sepia, to give the image more character.

The ring is a nice touch and the gradient backdrop adds subtle, pleasing contrast to the figure.

Ebenezer CorkScrooge
by scalvert

Comment:
Remarkably sharp and clear. I think the lighting is excellent and the magenta and green give nice definition to Ebenezer. My pick for top three.

Elephant
by SteveJ

Comment:
I can see the elephant. Looks like it has its snout raised up. I think this would also work if it was flipped vertically. Good, creative entry.

Sunny Blue Eyes
by spaque99

Comment:
Good composition-like the way you cropped this. Fine detail lost with aggressive noise reduction and results in an overall plasticky appearance.

The Vase
by xtabintun

Comment:
Famous illusion...did you draw it in with photoshop or did you use cardboard cutouts?

"Hidden Face"
by tfarrell23

Comment:
I see it, over on the larger rock. Nice composition overall and very appropriate entry for this challenge.

Gas Mask (aka, antique soda bottle)
by MJENNI

Comment:
Creative entry. This looks like an alien. Tastefully and aesthetically composed and nice choice of background.

Santa and friends (only cropped and rotated)
by Cam

Comment:
Nice fluffy clouds, but I cannot spot the face, much less something that resembles Santa.

Technically, this shot is somewhat flat. Under advanced editing rules, you could have increased the contrast to give this shot more depth, by adjusting either levels, curves, or bright/contrast. I would suggest doing a hue/saturation adjustment to deepen and saturate the blues. Lastly, there is noticable JPEG artifacting due to aggressive compression and the resulting miniscule 24,000 byte file size.

Small Naughty Birdie
by RayEthier

Comment:
Quite a unique entry, in that most submitted human faces. Technically and artistically presented very well without any glaring deficits. The background complements the bird well, but the texture is slightly distracting..perhaps a more solid, uniform backdrop would have given this a more clean presentation. Overall a great entry.

Can't figure out your title (naughty) but doesn't bother me.

Kahuna
by Skip

Comment:
Clever and with good focus and DOF. The mouth and nose are not that obvious but yes I can imagine the lines to represent those elements.